Jon Runyan Jr. has earned the opportunity to follow in dad's footsteps as an offensive lineman at Michigan / Tim Sullivan / Special to the DFP

By Tim Sullivan

Detroit Free Press Special Writer

Michigan’s coaching staff is racking up verbal commitments at a rate — in terms of speed and quality — almost never seen before in Ann Arbor. Still, the coaches value the Wolverine Technique School summer camp. Though it has mostly served as a preview of the 2015 and 2016 recruiting groups, Brady Hoke’s staff returned the event to the seniors Tuesday.

Two 2014 prospects earned offers from Michigan at the camp: Elkton (Md.) Eastern Christian Academy teammates Freddy Canteen and Brandon Watson. But for Michigan’s numbers on offensive line in the 2014 class, a third senior from ECA, Jamie Hess, might have picked one up as well.

Canteen is a tall, thin wide receiver, standing 6-feet-3 and 170 pounds. Although he’s undersized, the three-star prospect has the frame to add much more weight and the athletic ability to be a threat to opposing defenses. Watson is shorter and stouter than his teammate, but the defensive back is no less athletic. At 5-11 and 185 pounds, he’s physical enough to reroute receivers at the line of scrimmage and fleet enough to turn and run with them.

Michigan’s options at each position had seemed pretty defined entering the camp. Tarpon Springs (Fla.) East Lake four-star Artavis Scott looks to be the top priority at receiver. And a host of highly ranked defensive backs — including Bolingbrook (Ill.) cornerback Parrker Westphal and Long Beach (Calif.) Poly safety Juju Smith — are still on the table for U-M, as well. That Canteen and Watson still earned offers speaks to their performance.

The third offer handed out Tuesday went to a familiar name. Fans who remember the 1995 season may feel old when they hear that former U-M All-America offensive tackle Jon Runyan has a son in high school. Jon Runyan Jr. is a 2015 offensive line prospect, and though the 6-3, 250-pounder doesn’t have dad’s Brobdingnagian stature, he has every bit of the tenacity.

The product of Philadelphia St. Joseph’s Prep grew up dreaming of being a Wolverine, and he could become U-M’s first pledge of the 2015 class.

Tim Sullivan is the football recruiting editor of The Wolverine magazine and thewolverine.com. He is also a contributor to national football recruiting coverage on the rivals.com network. You can follow him on Twitter @tims_wolverine, and follow The Wolverine for the latest on U-M football recruiting.